This past week the Joint Commission has issued a safety alert concerning the use of blood thinners, including Heparin. The alert comes in the aftermath of almost 60,000 errors, 1,700 injuries, and 28 deaths involving blood thinners. The safety alert mandates that hospitals use stricter measures when administering blood thinners. These measures include bar-coding technology for medicines or computerized drug orders, and the storage of adult-strength heparin away from children's units.